choukeimatsu 5 plus 1
by KingPreussen
Summary: "Come on, Karamatsu," Osomatsu said, taking his brother by the wrist and pulling him to standing. Osomatsu grabbed the money Karamatsu had laid on top of the bill and put it back in Karamatsu's pocket. "We'll find somewhere else for dinner next time." or, Four times Osomatsu saw Karamatsu cry, and one time Karamatsu saw Osomatsu cry.


this was my first ososan fic after watching the show. i hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

1

* * *

"Your turn to pay, Kusomatsu," Ichimatsu murmured, pushing the paper bill on the table toward his elder brother, who took it with a roll of his eyes. They were finished eating at a new restaurant near the center of the city, with well-worn tables and free flowing beer taps. Really it was all around suited to the Matsuno brothers, and Totty had already taken copious pictures of them all inside and put them on his Instagram.

Karamatsu sighed, bringing his hand to his forehead and closing his eyes. "Because I love you so much, my brothers, I will take on the responsibility of-"

Osomatsu cut him off with a slam of his beer glass back to the table. He grinned, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. "Thanks, Kusomatsu," he said almost sincerely.

Karamatsu didn't try to continue his statement; he smiled at Osomatsu instead. It wasn't the fake smile he tried to use on pretty boys and girls, but the real one he tended to only show to his family. He took a breath, pulling cash out of his pocket, and said, "No problem."

"What did you just call him?" someone said behind them. A man in the waiter's uniform of the restaurant put down the dishes he was bussing on an empty table and walked over to them. None of the brothers missed how pale Karamatsu became when the man stopped nearest to him.

"Who are you?" Osomatsu asked instead of answering.

"Oh, did Kara not tell you?" Karamatsu, always one to sit up straight and exude confidence, seemed like he was trying his best to bury himself inside of his hoodie. "He was flirting-badly-with me at some bar a week ago. I pretended he was assaulting me and gave him a black eye!" The man laughed, slapping his hand down onto Karamatsu's shoulder. "I can't believe this idiot thought I was actually interested in him."

Even Totty put down his phone at that. They all remembered Karamatsu coming home, half-drunk, refusing to take his sunglasses off. It was only once he was asleep that they removed them and saw the purplish bruises around his eye. In the morning, when they asked him about it, he fed them some lie about falling off the roof again.

Karamatsu shoved his hands in his front pocket, not looking at any of them. They could see the man's hand tightening on Karamatsu's shoulder before he lifted it and ruffled his hair harshly. "You told me you had five brothers but I didn't believe you. How could anyone live with a stupid fuck like you for so long?"

Osomatsu half stood from his seat, his buzz fading as fast as his temper was rising. "Fuck off," he snapped. "Keep your hands off my brother."

The man lifted his hands palm forward in a show of surrender but he was still smirking. "I guess I'll see you later, Kusomatsu."

To the surprise of all the brothers, Jyushimatsu was the one to throw the first punch, decking the man and causing the other customers to turn and look at them. Choromatsu, finally snapping out of his shock, held him back before he could punch the man again.

"Jyushimatsu, calm down!" he was saying, holding Jyushimatsu's arms behind his back. "He's really not worth it!"

Totty got up too like he wanted to kick the guy while he was down, but Ichimatsu grabbed the back of his sweatshirt to keep him on the other side of the table. He didn't look all that unaffected, his mouth turned down in a deeper frown than usual; if anything he was able to control himself better than four out of his six brothers.

Karamatsu was still silent. His cheeks were flushed from alcohol, the rest of his face paper white. He looked like he was shaking very slightly. He hadn't even made a move to fix his hair, which looked worse than Ichimatsu's at this point.

"Come on, Karamatsu," Osomatsu said, taking his brother by the wrist and pulling him to standing. Osomatsu grabbed the money Karamatsu had laid on top of the bill and put it back in Karamatsu's pocket. "We'll find somewhere else for dinner next time."

Jyushimatsu, teeth gritted and lips sneering, stormed out after them, leaving Choromatsu to follow him quickly. Totty stopped pulling against Ichimatsu's grip on his sweater but Ichimatsu didn't let him go just in case, pushing him between his shoulder blades to march him outside with the rest.

"Did he really punch you?" Choromatsu asked, less angry and more worried.

Karamatsu touched the slightly yellow circle around his right eye with a shaking hand. "He did. But I deserved it."

Osomatsu's blood ran cold. "No, you definitely didn't," he protested.

"W-well," Karamatsu said, "It's like he said. People aren't interested in… in me." He fiddled with the hood strings that hung from his sweatshirt instead of looking anyone in the eye. "You're always telling me that I'm embarrassing to be around, and that I'm painful to look at. N-not that I'm blaming you!" he insisted immediately. "I believe you, I just don't know what to do to change."

Jyushimatsu grabbed him around the waist, burying his face against Karamatsu's shoulder. "Don't change," he said, voice muffled. "I like Karamatsu-nii-san the way he is."

After a shuddering breath, Karamatsu lightly placed one hand on the back of Jyushimatsu's head, rubbing his back with the other. "You're the only one," he said softly.

The other four were sure that statement wasn't meant for their ears and they didn't know what to say to make Karamatsu feel any better.

"Anyway," Karamatsu said, louder this time, "We should be getting home. It's late."

Osomatsu shook his head. "You four go. I need to talk to him."

Jyushimatsu and Choromatsu hesitated. Ichimatsu and Totty did their best to look disinterested but Osomatsu saw them sneaking glances at Karamatsu with his arms around his younger brother.

"I'm serious." Osomatsu crossed his arms over his chest; his habitual cheeky grin was gone, replaced by a scarily flat expression. "Catch a cab. I'll pay."

That's when they knew he wasn't fucking around. Jyushimatsu accepted a glancing kiss on the forehead before he pulled away, wrapping his arms around his stomach. Choromatsu took a step back, hesitated, and then turned around, facing the busy street and waving an arm.

A taxi pulled up almost immediately and they all piled in, Jyushimatsu sending one more forlorn look out of the window before they drove away.

Osomatsu turned back to his brother, took his elbow, and tugged him forward. "Come on," he said softly. "We're going to get some fresh air."

Karamatsu allowed himself to be led silently for about a block, and then out of nowhere, he burst into tears. Osomatsu was startled by the sudden change in mood and froze. "Karamatsu?" he asked, confused.

Karamatsu rubbed at his eyes with the sleeves of his sweatshirt but tears were still leaking down his face. "I'm sorry," he managed through hitched breaths. "I know everyone liked it there. If I hadn't come-"

"No." Osomatsu pulled his younger brother close, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to hug him tightly. "Don't you ever say that. We're allowed to tease you because we're your brothers, and we love you. And we're allowed to fight anyone who thinks they can insult you."

"But-"

"No buts." Osomatsu lifted one hand to brush extra tears from Karamatsu's cheeks. "You come to me if something like this happens again. I'm your older brother and I'm supposed to defend you."

Karamatsu's tears slowed down enough that he could actually look Osomatsu in the eye. "Are you sure?" he asked almost too quietly to be heard over the cars and people around them.

"Absolutely." Osomatsu rubbed his index finger under his nose, winking at Karamatsu. "I'd never miss the chance to kick someone's ass."

* * *

2

* * *

Osomatsu woke up to a soft but out of place sound to his right. He yawned into his hand and then leaned up on one arm to find out what it was. Totty was sleeping with his thumb in his mouth, and Ichimatsu was lying on his back, mostly still except for the slow rise and fall of his chest. That left Karamatsu.

He was turned away so Osomatsu couldn't see his face, but he could hear the soft, upset noises he was making. They tugged at Osomatsu's heart and he left the warmth of the futon as fast as he could without waking any of his younger brothers.

Osomatsu crawled over to kneel just above Karamatsu's head. His eyes were closed just like the other five, but he was shivering, tears running over the bridge of his nose and down to his pillow.

"Kara." Osomatsu shook him gently on the shoulder. "Kara. Karamatsu."

Karamatsu's eyes shot open and he sat up with a panicked inhale, eyes wide and unseeing. He almost cracked heads with Osomatsu, if the other hadn't moved back moments before.

"Osomatsu!" he wheezed, turning automatically to his left. When he didn't see Osomatsu asleep one brother across from him, he choked back a sob and climbed out from under the blanket. "Osoma-"

Osomatsu hushed him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Karamatsu, I'm right here."

Karamatsu almost knocked him to the floor in his haste to hug him. Somehow Osomatsu managed to keep them both upright and hugged Karamatsu back just as tightly. Karamatsu was clinging to him, clenching his fists in the back of Osomatsu's pajamas, and that scared Osomatsu more than the crying.

"Let's get some tea, hm?" They stood kind of awkwardly, because Karamatsu wasn't letting go and Osomatsu would have to have been completely heartless to push him away. He did have to hold Karamatsu with one hand on his waist to get down the stairs if only so they didn't injure themselves falling down all of them.

Karamatsu allowed himself to be seated near the kotatsu, which he automatically tucked his legs under. Osomatsu handed him a few tissues and smoothed a kink in his hair from sleeping on it oddly. "I'll be right back."

He turned on the kettle, readying the loose tea at the bottom of a mug. Karamatsu drank his tea unsweetened and didn't care about loose leaves unlike the rest of his brothers, who had extremely variable tastes but all hated how his tea tasted equally.

The kettle seemed like it was taking an exceptionally long time to boil. Osomatsu watched it, tapping his foot, until the switch clicked off. He poured Karamatsu's tea, left the kitchen light on so that it would shine into the main room, and sat next to Karamatsu at the table.

"It's hot, so be careful," Osomatsu said. He rubbed the back of Karamatsu's neck until his shoulders relaxed from where they were hunched up around his ears.

"Thank you, nii-san." Karamatsu's voice was hoarse and he didn't even say brother in English. Osomatsu only got more worried.

Karamatsu leaned forward until his elbows were resting on the table. Osomatsu swept his hand down until it was resting against the middle of Karamatsu's spine and continued to rub circles into his back. "Were you having a bad dream?" he asked gently.

Karamatsu nodded, resting his head on folded arms.

"Want to tell me about it?"

It took a moment before Karamatsu nodded again.

"Take your time," Osomatsu said.

A few minutes and sips of tea later, Karamatsu turned toward his brother, looking at the top button on his pajamas instead of his face. "It's always the same dream," he murmured. "Everyone ignores me, but it's not like usual. I-it's like you can't see me at all. And you all leave home… you, you all go to have your own lives, and I can't get out. I can't open the door and I'm trapped, alone, and-"

"Shh, shh." Osomatsu pulled Karamatsu's head to his chest. "You're rambling. Just take a deep breath.

Karamatsu did, and then leaned further into his brother's side. "It's a stupid dream," he said, but he sounded completely unsure, like he was lying to himself and he knew it.

"It's not stupid," Osomatsu protested, "But it is unrealistic. There's no way we could forget about you."

Instead of protesting, Karamatsu sniffed and wiped his eyes with the tissues again. Osomatsu let him refrain from answering. He did, however, make Karamatsu drink the rest of his tea before it got cold. When he was finished, Osomatsu took the mug back into the kitchen, turned off the light, and brought Karamatsu back to their room.

The good thing was, Totty had rolled over to be closer to Ichimatsu. Totty ran the coldest out of all of them, Ichimatsu, the warmest. Osomatsu huffed fondly at the sight of them curled against each other. Then he pulled down the blanket just enough for Karamatsu to climb in and turned back to him.

Karamatsu just looked at him. There were still tear tracks on his cheeks and his eyes were red.

"Come on, Karamatsu."

He continued to stand there, eyes wide and confused. "Why…?"

Osomatsu grinned at him. "You think I'm just gonna let you worry the rest of the night?"

"But why do you care?" It seemed like it was a genuine question, from the way Karamatsu tilted his head and furrowed his brow.

Osomatsu's grin faded. He realized that Karamatsu was visibly uncomfortable with their teasing if it went on for too long, but he didn't think Karamatsu thought it was serious.

"Because you're my little brother. Because I love you." It was always easier to say these things in the dark, in whispers, than to declare them in the daylight. Osomatsu would have to work on doing that, though, because Karamatsu took a hesitant step forward, and then stopped again. "Karamatsu, please. We'll be tired in the morning."

"No, I c-can stay up alone, and you can-"

"Matsuno Karamatsu, if you don't get your ass into bed right now." Osomatsu didn't even have to finish the threat, because Karamatsu curled up under the blanket, his head on Totty's pillow. Osomatsu got into the futon next to him, folding one arm under his head and resting the other over Karamatsu's ribs, pulling him closer.

Karamatsu ended up with his head under Osomatsu's chin, his arms curled up in front of his chest. "I'm sorry I'm like this."

Osomatsu didn't know what to say. Instead, he held Karamatsu tighter.

* * *

3

* * *

They all caught the same cold, again. This time, none of them were well enough to pretend to care for the other five, so they just stayed in bed all day feeling sorry for themselves. Eventually they had to come down for dinner so they didn't starve.

Instead of their normal fare, dinner was rice and thin soup. They all tucked their feet up together, wrapped the blanket from their futon around all six of them, and tried to eat as slowly as possible.

"I can't believe this," Totty said, frowning down at his rice.

"I'll kill whoever started it," Ichimatsu added.

Choromatsu clicked his tongue. "Totty's the only one with a job. He probably got it from one of his coworkers."

All eyes turned to Totty. He rolled his eyes and shook his head condescendingly. "Really, Choromatsu? You probably caught it from all those nerds you hang out with at your idol concerts."

Ichimatsu looked over at Jyushimatsu. "He's the one who likes to roll around in the dirt. He probably caught it first."

Jyushimatsu waved his arms. "No way! I always wash my hands! Ichimatsu's the one who doesn't wash his hands after he uses the bathroom."

"Oh my fucking God." Totty shuffled away from him, more into Choromatsu's side. "That's so disgusting."

"And it's not true!"

Osomatsu was barely listening to their argument. He was watching Karamatsu, whose eyes were fixed firmly on his soup. He would take a spoonful, dump half of it back into the bowl, and then put it in his mouth and swallow it. Then he would close his eyes and wait like he was making sure it stayed down.

After a few bites like this, Osomatsu put a hand on Karamatsu's leg. "Are you okay?" he asked underneath the now shouting voices of his brothers.

Karamatsu nodded. And then, quite suddenly, he shook his head. Before Osomatsu could move, Karamatsu threw up over the both of them.

Everyone else shut up at the sound of Karamatsu retching-he was trying to cover his mouth with his hands, hunched over into himself. "Sorry, sorry, I'm sorry," he managed between pained sounding coughs and more retching.

Osomatsu took charge. "Choromatsu, Ichimatsu, can you put this blanket out for wash? Totty, get a new one and put it on the futon. Jyushimatsu, get Karamatsu a glass of water and a glass of ice and bring them up to the bathroom."

Everyone did as he asked without question, leaving their places and, sniffling and coughing themselves, attempting to help as best they could.

Karamatsu had stopped emptying his stomach but he was still crying. "I didn't mean to, nii-san, I'm sorry!"

"No, it's okay Karamatsu." He couldn't help some of it spilling onto the floor when he stood up-it was watery and loose from the soup-but he ignored it to clean up later. His first priority was his brother. "Come on, can you stand up?"

Karamatsu cried harder. Unfortunately, Osomatsu was too tired to pick him up and carry him all the way up the stairs, so he had to coax Karamatsu to standing and guide him up to the bathroom. Karamatsu tripped a few times but Osomatsu was always right next to him so he didn't fall.

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up…." Osomatsu took his pajama shirt off, and then Karamatsu's entire set, and sat him on the floor of their small bathtub. "I'll be right back, I promise."

Osomatsu practically ran into the bedroom (practically was a strong word for it, but he certainly tried) and picked up a few things for Karamatsu to wear, including his painful tank top with his own face on it. He got himself one of his own red tee shirts and quickly pulled it over his head. He could always take a bath later, once Karamatsu was comfortable in bed.

He went back into the bathroom to find Jyushimatsu sitting on the floor next to the bath, feeding Karamatsu ice chips. They both looked up at him when he walked in. Karamatsu's crying had slowed because of the presence of his little brother, but he still looked miserable.

"Thank you, Jyushimatsu," Osomatsu said, kneeling next to them. He turned on the faucet for the tub, and then switched it to the showerhead, taking it down from its holder and running it onto his hand until it was warm.

"Can I wash his hair?" Jyushimatsu asked, already holding Karamatsu's ridiculously fancy shampoo.

Osomatsu smiled gratefully. "Of course. Just watch out for his eyes." He ran the warm water into Karamatsu's hair first, tilting his head back so his face was toward the ceiling. Then he rinsed off the rest of his body, making sure to wet every part of him. "Okay, Karamatsu, we'll only be a few minutes. Then you can go back to sleep."

"Thank you, Jyushimatsu, Osomatsu-nii-san," he stammered. "I don't know what happened, I didn't mean to throw up during dinner-" He seemed to realize something and his lips pressed together to hide their upset wobbling. "No one got to finish their dinner because of me. And I ruined the floor and the blanket."

Osomatsu, having picked up the soap and rubbed it into a cloth, was cleaning Karamatsu's legs and chest. "All those things are easily fixed. You didn't 'ruin' anything." He used the showerhead to rinse Karamatsu down again, rinsing his hair as well when Jyushimatsu pulled his hands away. "What's important is to help you feel better."

Karamatsu leaned forward this time, tucking his knees up to his chest as Jyushimatsu scrubbed his back. "We're all sick. It's not fair to my little brothers to make them clean up after me."

"You're forgetting everything you've done for us, Karamatsu. The least we can do is take care of you when you're not well." Osomatsu pressed a kiss into Karamatsu's wet, clean hair. "And you're forgetting, you're my little brother."

Jyushimatsu, letting Osomatsu do all the talking, silently rinsed Karamatsu's back and handed him another ice chip to suck on. It did the double duty of hydrating him after his vomiting jag and keeping his mouth occupied so he couldn't spout inane things anymore.

"Here, rinse your mouth," Osomatsu said, helping him drink from the glass of water. Every time Karamatsu spit it into the bottom of the tub Osomatsu rinsed it away with the shower head until the whole glass was gone.

"The futon is ready," Totty said, leaning against the doorway to the bathroom. His eyes were puffy and half-lidded, face red with fever, and he didn't look entirely balanced standing up. When Karamatsu caught sight of him he grabbed for a towel, trying to stand up and get out of the bath.

"Don't fall and crack your head open, idiot!" Totty moved forward, along with Osomatsu and Jyushimatsu, to help him up and dry him off.

Karamatsu was shaking his head and shivering. "You're all sick!" he insisted. "You should be-should be going to bed! I can handle myself."

Totty opened his mouth, probably to say something like "you can't, Kusomatsu!" but Osomatsu beat him to the punch. "That's true, but we don't want you to." He brought the tank top and sweatpants he left on the sink forward, dressing Karamatsu with a little help from his brothers.

Karamatsu looked close to crying again when they were finished. "Thanks Totty, Jyushimatsu," Osomatsu said, holding Karamatsu up with an arm around his waist. "Go to the bedroom and lay down. I'll clean up downstairs."

Totty smiled slightly at him. "Ichimatsu and Choromatsu already did," he explained. Karamatsu looked surprised but didn't say anything about it. Osomatsu was sure he was planning to do something outrageous to thank them, like paying for all of their meals for the next week or cleaning all the dishes for a month. Osomatsu made a mental note not to let him.

"Okay, Kara, let's go. Baby steps." They shuffled their way into the bedroom, followed by Totty and Jyushimatsu, to find Ichimatsu and Choromatsu piling extra pillows into the middle of the futon.

"Oh, good," Choromatsu sighed. "Here, Karamatsu. In the middle. Keeping you upright might help with your stomach."

"Thank you so much, brother." Karamatsu lowered himself onto his knees on top of the futon and let everyone help him under the fresh blanket. "You all didn't have to do this for me. I can really take care of myself; you never have to go out of your way for me."

Ichimatsu made a derisive noise. "Yes, we do, nii-san." That was all he said, but he did fluff the pillows under Karamatsu's head.

Jyushimatsu climbed in on one side of him, his head on Karamatsu's chest and his arm over his thighs so nothing pressed on his sensitive stomach. Karamatsu smiled for the first time in a few days, wrapping his arm around Jyushimatsu's shoulders. Osomatsu quickly took his other side, holding the glass of ice chips just in case.

Totty, Ichimatsu, and Choromatsu chose roughly the same spaces they normally slept in, staying quiet so Karamatsu could fall asleep quickly.

Osomatsu could see his eyes closing, probably because of the stress of the last hour, but he was awake enough to murmur his thanks to all of them. He got varying degrees of "No problem" in reply, and Jyushimatsu sighed against him.

* * *

4

* * *

Karamatsu was smiling ridiculously. It wasn't his "cool" smile, and it wasn't the fake smile he sometimes used when he thought he had to please his brothers. Osomatsu watched him watch their younger brothers running around on the beach.

Totty was throwing bucketful after bucketful of water at everyone; Ichimatsu was floating on an inflatable chair in the shallow parts between the sand and the net in the children's section; Choromatsu was looking through an idol magazine, lying on his stomach on a towel; and Jyushimatsu was throwing seashells into the air, hitting them with his bat.

Osomatsu chose to stay out of the sun for now, leaning back on his elbows at the towels with all of their stuff on them under the big umbrella they pooled their money to buy. Karamatsu, in his sunglasses that actually served a purpose, was sitting at the edge of the towels, legs crossed like a pretzel and hands on his knees.

Occasionally he would laugh quietly to himself, when Totty got tackled to the sand by Jyushimatsu, or when Ichimatsu accidentally flipped his floating chair, but otherwise he seemed content to just… look.

Because they were NEETs (at least, most of them) it was a Tuesday afternoon and they had the entire public beach to themselves. Since there were so many of them, it was lively and loud even without anyone else there.

Osomatsu rubbed under his nose for a moment. Jyushimatsu was running toward him, and he couldn't help the nervous tic, afraid Jyushimatsu was going to tackle him just like he did his younger brother.

Instead, Jyushimatsu stopped just in front of him, and then threw his arms around Osomatsu's neck. "Thank you for bringing us here, Osomatsu-nii-san!" he practically shouted into Osomatsu's ear. "This was such a good idea!" He ran off again before Osomatsu could even reply.

Smiling almost as wide as Karamatsu, Osomatsu addressed his first younger brother. "It was your idea, you know."

Karamatsu turned toward him, his smiling dimming to more manageable levels. "My idea?" he asked, looking at Osomatsu over his sunglasses.

"To come here. Remember what you said yesterday?"

Karamatsu thought, and then slowly shook his chuckled. "You said you wanted to come to the beach before summer ended. And I thought, why not?"

"You remember that?" Karamatsu hid behind his sunglasses again. "I didn't think anyone heard."

"I heard." Osomatsu came closer to him, just before the edge of the sun peeking over their umbrella. "You don't have to speak quietly around us, like you think we don't care about what you have to say."

Karamatsu just looked at him. And then a tear rolled down his cheek from underneath his sunglasses. Osomatsu made a questioning noise, reaching forward to wipe it away.

That seemed to be the signal for Karamatsu that he was actually crying. He didn't take his sunglasses off, instead taking a tissue from one of their bags and wiping his eyes from underneath them. "Just sand," he said to the unasked question he assumed Osomatsu had in mind.

"No, it's not," Osomatsu said, pressing their shoulders together, and let it go.

Karamatsu almost cried again later that day, laughing at Ichimatsu's extensive sunburn.

* * *

+1

* * *

"I got a job," Karamatsu said at breakfast. Everyone stopped eating to look at him, a mixture of disbelief (Ichimatsu and Totty) and pride (Jyushimatsu and Choromatsu). "It's nothing amazing, my brothers, but it does fit with my unending charisma and charm-"

Ichimatsu sighed heavily. "Just tell us what it is," he monotoned, seeming disinterested except for the way his eyes followed Karamatsu's every move.

Karamatsu nodded, a smile on his face. "I'm playing music at one of the cafés in the middle of the city. You know how they always have a guitarist near the back for ambiance?" He affected a horrible French accent over the random English, making everyone around the table wince. "It starts at 3 pm, five days a week."

Totty leaned forward with an elbow on the table. "How much are you getting paid?"

Of course all of them wanted to know about the money. "Well, I'm not working hourly. I get 20000 yen a week."

Osomatsu's eyes lit up and he stood, hands planted on the table. "20000 yen a week?" he asked disbelievingly. "And is any of that going to your loving, caring older brother?"

"Osomatsu!" Choromatsu was quick to scold, but Karamatsu stopped him with a raised hand.

"Of course," he responded, a grin lifting one side of his lips. "Our parents support us so I don't really need it. Half of it will go to them, and half to you five."

They all looked at him like he was out of his fucking mind. "Are you out of your fucking mind?" Totty asked for all of them.

Karamatsu's expression went from happy to hesitant. He met everyone's eyes, landing on Osomatsu last. "It's to pay you all back…." He trailed off, tucking his hands under the table, and did another round of looking at all his brothers. "You always pay for our meals and our drinks… and I figured, after twenty-odd-years of dealing with me, you deserve a few thousand yen." He laughed until he saw no one else was laughing, and then quieted himself.

Osomatsu took a slow breath. "How many times have I told you, Karamatsu," he said in a low, almost angry voice, "That we don't 'deal' with you?"

"You do. You absolutely do!" Karamatsu frowned back at his brother over the table. "I'm not blind, brother, and I'm certainly not deaf. Any idiot knows when they're just taking up space."

Choromatsu and Totty looked like they were going to say something for a moment, but they both closed their mouths and continued to stare at Karamatsu. He assumed they didn't think he heard what they said when he wasn't around. A pang of guilt hit him when he realized that he was eavesdropping the entire time.

Osomatsu sniffled, pulling Karamatsu's attention from his own thoughts. His only elder brother had his eyes covered with his pajama sleeves, shoulders shaking. At first, Karamatsu thought he was laughing, until he looked up with shining eyes and trembling lips. "I can't believe this. I can't believe you!"

"I'm sorry, Oso-"

"Why didn't you say anything? Why do you always fucking do this," Osomatsu began to shout, slamming his hands on the table with every word. "Not one of us thinks you're a burden. We all shit on each other because we're family, but you can't expect anyone to know what you're feeling if you don't fucking tell us!"

His words were slurring and stuttered the more he sobbed; Karamatsu was afraid he'd make himself sick. "It doesn't matter to me, Osomatsu-nii-san, I just want to make you all happy!"

Apparently that wasn't the thing to say. Osomatsu walked around the kotatsu until he was next to Karamatsu, who, for a moment, was convinced his brother was going to hit him. As it was, he did get grabbed by the back of his shirt and hauled to standing, but Osomatsu pulled him into a hug instead of injuring him.

"Fuck you," Osomatsu said into his shoulder. Karamatsu wasn't sure what to do. Osomatsu was never the most emotional out of the six. If anyone were to burst into tears after Karamatsu, it would probably be Totty. Osomatsu prided himself on being the strong eldest brother and now that image was ruined in front of everyone.

Choromatsu cleared his throat. "Karamatsu, he's right. We're just teasing you. If you really hate it, we'll stop…."

"I don't hate it, brother," Karamatsu said with a soft smile over Osomatsu's shoulder. He patted his brother's back like he was trying to calm a small child. "If I did, I would have left a long time ago."

"You're not leaving," Ichimatsu responded immediately. "Don't talk like that, Kusomatsu, because it's not true."

Jyushimatsu came up to Karamatsu's other side, throwing his arms around both of his brothers. "Don't be sad, Osomatsu-nii-san. Karamatsu-nii-san knows we love him."

Osomatsu shook his head and tightened his hold around Karamatsu's waist. "Does he?" he asked in a small, hitching voice.

"He does." Totty looked seriously up at the three of them. "Sure he gets teased a little more than normal when we're all together, but we all have something we do with him one on one. None of that needs to be repaid," Totty was quick to clarify, "But it is true."

Karamatsu wished he had his sunglasses with him to hide the fact that he wanted to cry too. "I know that, Totty," he assured. "Try explaining it to Osomatsu. And if you don't want repayment, the money is a gift."

"Stop being selfless," Osomatsu whined, but Karamatsu chose to ignore him, continuing to let Osomatsu and Jyushimatsu trap him between them until they decided to let go.


End file.
